Five friends drive up to a cottage hidden away deep in the woods. One of them encounters a man with tattered and torn skin when hunting for squirrels. The infected man begs for help but our hero refuses and flees the scene.

The infected man reaches the group in their small house and tries to obtain help. After being refused entry, he decides to try and get aid by stealing the teens’ vehicle. Obviously, the teens don’t let him take their property and attack the man until death follows.

Soon, they suffer the first signs of infection and they quarantine each other.

Review

Actors

Plot

Quality

Originality

There is something really worrisome about contagious diseases and the fear that they inspire. What is scarier than the disease itself is the reaction of those who fear it. This aspect is amply covered by Cabin Fever. The group of friends, at first armed with remarkable chemistry, shatters once the first case of infection is discovered.

For a film to be classified as horror, we must find a pretext to confine our characters to a certain location, with a limited number of resources. Here, everything goes: broken down car, dead cell phone, psychotic neighbors, etc. Disgusting clichés are abundant, underlining the film’s unique identity. It is for these good (and less good) reasons that it reminds us of the eighties.

It offers a brand of humor similar to that of The Convent: lots of contrast but well inserted between bloodbaths. Sadly, Cabin Fever should have used a bit more subtlety with this humor. We don’t know what to think of the story when we toggle between both extremes.

Sometimes, we get the feeling that the director wanted to insert the most unusual events in the less opportune moments. Among these, there is a dog that has an obsession for the infected (that wants to devour them), a little girl that bites everyone that comes close and a band of villagers that is as menacing as the disease itself. These events, in my opinion, decrease the importance of the main menace. Cabin Fever will surely not please everyone. It isn’t the most conventional horror film nor the most relaxing but it is very audacious.